Central California Photo Gallery

View Andy and Allison Salmon’s bonus photo gallery that accompanies their feature on diving Central California.

Cocos Island

“Pura vida!” our dive guide, Sergio, exclaimed with a relaxed smile. Eight dive buddies, Sergio, and I just had an incredible experience: A 35-foot-long whale shark swam a few feet over our heads at one of the better-known dive sites at Cocos Island, Costa Rica. It silently came and went, seemingly carefree, like a giant spotted apparition sliding out of sight into the deep blue.

Getting Centered

With the COVID-19 pandemic curbing international travel, divers can still choose to dive locally. Andy and Allison Sallmon take us along on their road trip to Central California dive sites, where we can discover macro subjects in Morro Bay and bountiful marine life at the well-protected sites at Carmel and Monterey Bay.

Fakfak

Just before sunrise I make a cup of strong Indonesian tea and feel the familiar rush of anticipation that always builds when I dive where no one else has. From the liveaboard’s top deck I squint at a string of islands— just green dots from here — that stretch offshore from the Fakfak Regency …

La Paz Photo Gallery

After reading Tanya Burnett’s feature about La Paz, see more of her amazing images in this photo gallery.

Triton Bay

TRITON BAY, INDONESIA, was one of the last places I visited before the COVID-19 pandemic struck. Looking back, part of me wishes I would have been there instead of at home when the world turned upside down and international dive travel became almost impossible. An extended sabbatical in the middle of bustling hordes of fish […]

La Paz

La Paz, on Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula, has always been connected to the sea, from its indigenous pre-Columbian people and a history of sea explorers, pearl divers and fishers to a modern destination attracting ocean-inspired tourists to interact with the abundant marine treasures of this region.

The Philippines

During the pandemic I asked my partner, David Doubilet, a question: “If you had one full year to dive in one country, what country would it be?” I thought he might need some time to consider, given he has spent five decades documenting the sea for National Geographic.

A backlit Rhinopias scorpionfish

Sentinels for the Seas

The U.S. currently has 14 national marine sanctuaries and two marine national monuments, and each has its own unique story. In preserving these irreplaceable resources, the sanctuaries protect who we are at our base — our soul as a nation. They reaffirm us and connect us to our incredible heritage.

Freediving French Polynesia

The chronology of my last sojourn to French Polynesia was much longer than the travel time from Seattle, Washington, to the capital Papeʻete on the island of Tahiti.

A bird’s-eye view from Moorea
English